The UFC 279 early main card features five bouts, all of which will be previewed in this post. After much drama, and some matchmaking musical chairs by the UFC, the main event will be a welterweight bout between Nate Diaz (pictured above left) and Tony Ferguson (pictured above right). The co-main will feature a 180 pound catchweight bout between Khamzat Chimaev and Kevin Holland. All win probabilities are based on a fighter’s CC Rating and their place in the CC Rankings.

The previews for the prelim cards can be found HERE and HERE.

Johnny Walker vs. Ion Cutelaba (Men’s Light Heavyweight)

Subjective Spin on Objective Reality: This fight is going to be a contender for Fight of the Night honors. Both men are intense, aggressive fighters. Walker (NR CC, #13 UFC) was once tabbed to be the man who could take out Jon Jones. He’s since shown holes in his game. But, when he’s on point, fights end early for the other guy. Cutelaba has shown ability to hang with the best but has been susceptible to finishes. Walker’s gotten a bad rap lately because of recent losses. However, expect both men to swing for the fences early, which will benefit the Brazilian Walker.

Editor’s Pick: Walker

[6] Irene Aldana vs. [9] Macy Chiasson (Women’s 140 lb Catchweight)

Subjective Spin on Objective Reality: This fight has big implications for the shape of the bantamweight division going forward. However, both women have struggled to get down to 135 pounds in the recent past. Aldana (#6 CC, #4 UFC) has great, rangy striking coupled with top notch takedown defense. That’s made her naturally hard to beat. Chiasson (#9 CC, #10 UFC) scraped out a controversial split decision her last time out. She too has range and size and will match up well with Aldana. That said, Aldana’s fought better competition and has more routes to victory with an impressive finish rate for this division.

Editor’s Pick: Aldana

[15] Li Jingliang vs. Daniel Rodriguez (Men’s 180 lb Catchweight)

Subjective Spin on Objective Reality: Jingliang (#15 CC, #14 UFC) really is as game as they come. He took on a fight with the aforementioned Chimaev when few would. Now, after all the shuffling, he ends up with an opponent who weighed in nearly ten pounds heavier than him. He’s coming off an impressive KO victory over Muslim Salikhov. Rodriguez hasn’t fought in over a year when he sent former title contender Kevin Lee out of the UFC for good. Both fighters are similar in their resumes, with Jingliang looking to leverage his speed and Rodriguez his size advantage for this bout.

Editor’s Pick: Jingliang

[11] Kevin Holland vs. Khamzat Chimaev (Men’s 180 lb Catchweight)

Subjective Spin on Objective Reality: Another result of the last minute shuffle was Holland (#11 CC, NR UFC) getting moved from his fight with Rodriguez to this one with Chimaev (NR CC, #3 UFC). Holland has been very good since coming down to welterweight. He’ll be a little bigger for this fight, but has momentum at his back. Chimaev is as hot as any fighter out there right now and it seems his toughest opponent so far was the UFC 279 scales. He came in heavy, making him a better fit for this catchweight bout. He’s also a solid fit for an opponent like Holland who is notoriously poor in the ground game. Chimaev, on the other hand, has some of the most relentless wrestling out there.

Editor’s Pick: Chimaev

[7/lw] Tony Ferguson vs. [13] Nate Diaz (Men’s Welterweight)

Subjective Spin on Objective Reality: This bout between veterans is one that could’ve happened at any point in either man’s career. But, thanks to the chaos at the weigh-ins, it will happen at UFC 279. Ferguson (#7/lw CC, #11/lw UFC) is looking to rebound after a tough stretch of four straight losses to four of the top six fighters in the lightweight division. He’d like to reclaim the magic he had during his 12-fight win streak. He’s shown flashes of his former self and is always dangerous when he’s on your legs. Diaz (#13 CC, NR UFC) is likely walking out for his last UFC bout. He’s had a storied career of 26 UFC bouts, including one of the biggest upsets in the sport’s history when he submitted Conor McGregor at UFC 196. Diaz is not known for his ground game now, but does have an impressive 11 submissions to his name. He’s also always down for a scrap and seems tough to finish no matter how the fight’s going. Tony should have an advantage in the striking department. That might free him up to get yet another D’Arce choke submission to get back in the win column.

Editor’s Pick: Ferguson

Photo Credit: ESPN